{"id":3869,"date":"2015-10-01T08:00:38","date_gmt":"2015-10-01T13:00:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bestofswla.com\/?p=3869"},"modified":"2016-03-02T12:53:13","modified_gmt":"2016-03-02T18:53:13","slug":"a-cut-above","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bestofswla.com\/2015\/10\/01\/a-cut-above\/","title":{"rendered":"NIC HUNTER: A CUT ABOVE"},"content":{"rendered":"

Nic Hunter On Business, Politics And The Future Of SWLA<\/strong><\/p>\n

FIRST IN A SERIES OF SWLA VISIONARIES<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

Story By Scott E. Raymond \u2022 Photos By Lindsey Janies<\/em><\/p>\n

\"NicHunter-5095\"<\/a>When first meeting Nicholas E. \u201cNic\u201d Hunter, age 31, you may be initially struck by his imposing 6-ft., 2-in.-plus height and medium build.\u00a0 Well-groomed, and wearing a black suit with a white, long-sleeve, open-collar shirt, on this occasion Hunter looks every bit the business man. But after engaging him in conversation, as this writer recently did, it is his words that are likely to stay with you, words that indicate he\u2019s not a business person concerned only about the bottom-line, or a politician concerned mostly about what others want to hear, but someone who speaks his mind honestly, and after thoughtful consideration. His maturity seems to outweigh his years. \u201cIf I had to describe myself,\u201d Hunter says, \u201cdefinitely, work ethic would be one of the first things.\u201d<\/p>\n

An Early Introduction To Work Ethic<\/strong><\/p>\n

In 1996, at the age of 12, Nic Hunter began showing some interest in the family business, an already well-established \u2014 since 1956 \u2014 and well-known steak house and restaurant in Lake Charles called Hunter\u2019s Harlequin Steak House and Seafood.\u00a0 The restaurant was begun by his grandparents. After his grandfather, Mr. Edward Hunter, passed away, his grandmother, Mrs. Lucille Hunter, managed the restaurant, and gave young Nic the hands-on training he would need five years later, and at just 17, to take total charge of the business.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy grandmother is probably the biggest influence on my life. She encouraged me to be active and productive,\u201d Hunter says. \u201cAnd work ethic is something she instilled in me from a very young age. And, so, at the age of 12, I started working in the restaurant, and I started busing tables \u2014 washing dishes. I really worked my way up through the ranks, and got to the point \u2014 who knows when it was actually official \u2014 that \u2018Nic\u2019s in charge.\u2019 But by the time I was 17 or 18 years old, I was at the point that I was signing checks, hiring, firing, and was running the restaurant.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hunter says his grandmother was a product of the Great Depression, and that his whole mind-set was framed by her.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe never made me want for anything, but she always made me appreciate everything, and that is something that will go on with me forever,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

Hunter says that when his grandparents started the business in 1956, it was only a lounge.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe reason we\u2019re a steak house and a restaurant is because of Hurricane Audrey,\u201d he says. \u201cAfter the hurricane, there was such an influx of insurance adjusters and business people in town, and the rebuilding effort was so high, and there weren\u2019t a lot of places to go eat \u2014 there weren\u2019t a lot of, specifically, steak houses to go eat \u2014 so my grandparents decided to capitalize on that need, and they started serving steaks. I don\u2019t know if I can say this with 100 percent surety, but I believe they were the first restaurant to really start serving fully-loaded baked potatoes in Lake Charles.\u201d<\/p>\n

Today, as owner and manager of the Harlequin, Hunter has come to view his position with the restaurant as one that carries with it a number of things, including joy, honor, responsibility and personal satisfaction.<\/p>\n

\u201cKnowing that I\u2019m carrying the torch and the legacy of my grandparents is very important to me. I hold that dear\u201a\u201d he says. \u201cMy business is an interesting business, because we offer a service that people can enjoy, not only from a solo standpoint, but with their entire family. The best feeling I have at work is when I\u2019m walking through a full dining room, and I see people with their families, I see people celebrating birthdays, I see anniversaries, and I feel like I\u2019m bringing people joy. I will also throw in what an honor and responsibility it is to be an employer, and to have employees who you can help provide for their families, and help them progress if they want to continue in the restaurant business, that\u2019s great, or if they are using this as a stepping stone to get through McNeese or Sowela, that is a really rewarding feeling. I have fond memories of employees coming to me and thanking me for the opportunity to work for me while they got through McNeese, or got through Sowela, and knowing that I helped them achieve that goal, that\u2019s a very rewarding feeling as well.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hunter says that he loves Lake Charles, and that the city has been good to both himself and his family, and adds that the approach to community needs to be looked at holistically.<\/p>\n

\"NicHunter-5192\"<\/a>\u201cI\u2019m a big proponent of people bettering themselves, so they can be self-sufficient,\u201d Hunter says. \u201cThat\u2019s what I\u2019ve always tried to do; that\u2019s what I\u2019ve tried to do for my family; and, that\u2019s what I strive to see our community become more like.\u201d<\/p>\n

Characteristics Of A Good Public Servant<\/strong><\/p>\n

Loving his hometown area, and always wanting to give back to it in some way with his time and talents, in 2011, Hunter ran for and was elected to the Calcasieu Parish Police Jury, District 5, which represents the Lake Charles area and portions of Ward 3.\u00a0 When asked about the characteristics of a good public servant, Hunter ranks honesty number one.<\/p>\n

\u201cI am more comfortable telling someone the truth, knowing that they will disagree with me and may never vote for me again, than I would be lying to somebody,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

Hunter says that vision is also an important characteristic of a good public servant.<\/p>\n

\u201cNot only (a vision) for today, not only a vision for this hour, not only a vision for this year or the next two years, but vision for the next decade; vision for the next generation,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

Hunter mentions his degree in history from McNeese State University as a segue to addressing his love for looking at old photos of cities such as Atlanta, Austin and Houston, and seeing the roots that these great cities of today came from. He says that there were leaders of those early communities that made some decisions at the time that, perhaps, a number of people might not have understood or agreed with, but that, as a result of those decisions, people can look at some of those success stories and see what those cities and communities are today.<\/p>\n

Locally, Hunter cites two examples of projects that he believes were visionary: the Interstate-210 Lake Charles Loop, and the Lake Charles Civic Center. He says that when the I-210 Loop was first proposed, a number of people dismissed it as a waste of money, and said that it was going to displace a lot of people from their homes.<\/p>\n

\u201cThank God we have the 210 Loop,\u201d Hunter says.<\/p>\n

And, as for the Civic Center, \u201c(It was built on) land that was filled in from sediment from the lake, and (according to some), it was going to be folly. I think the Civic Center has been a gem for this city,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

Other characteristics Hunter mentions is the ability to work with others, and the willingness to constantly learn.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve been schooled several times that I don\u2019t know everything, and the moment someone thinks that they do know everything is the moment that they stop growing,\u201d he says. \u201cAnd I remind myself of that often. I have to remind myself, when you go into a meeting, don\u2019t think that you have your mind 100-percent made up, or that you have all the facts, or that you know the best way. Just because you didn\u2019t think of an idea doesn\u2019t mean that it\u2019s not a good idea. And I wish that would permeate more on a state and national level than it does.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Importance Of Infrastructure<\/strong><\/p>\n

President of the Calcasieu Parish Police Jury to the end of this year, Hunter says that his time as a police juror has been rewarding, but, he says with a chuckle, working in government is very different than business. He says he is frustrated, at times, with the slow pace of government.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a very slow-paced environment, and that has been a struggle for me. But I realize it is not a monopoly; there is not one man, there is not even one small group of people, that make the decisions. It\u2019s truly a community, and we have to hear the community\u2019s voice,\u201d Hunter says. \u201cBut, as far as being rewarded from being involved with the Police Jury, again, I love Lake Charles, and I think we\u2019re at a precipice right now in Lake Charles. I believe we have, right now, one of those once- or twice-in-a-century opportunities, and I think we must look at our infrastructure. And, so, probably the most rewarding thing that I can say concretely is when we go and we sign off on building another road, or we\u2019re looking at a drainage study. And some of the most rewarding things for me are some of the most boring things for some people, because when we talk about drainage, or water districts or roads, that\u2019s not really a fun topic, but the communities that invest in those things, and the ones that think down the road for those things for the next 10 or 20 years, those are ones that are going to really thrive.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe Must Think As A Community \u2014 A Community Vision\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

We come to the latter part of our conversation, and discuss the billions of dollars of growth \u2014 the tsunami of economic growth, if you will \u2014 coming to Southwest Louisiana. What does Southwest Louisiana have to do to get it right, so that when all is said and done, it can be said that we did it right as a community? And are we doing what we need to be doing now? Are we spot-on?<\/p>\n

Says Hunter:<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve laid the foundation for success, but the real hard work is ahead, and it\u2019s going to be politically hard work. We must think as a community. We must stop thinking of ourselves as \u2018my neighborhood;\u2019 \u2018my section of Lake Charles;\u2019 \u2018my Ward in Calcasieu Parish.\u2019 We\u2019ve got to start thinking of ourselves as Calcasieu Parish; Southwest Louisiana; Lake Charles, the City of Lake Charles; not north Lake Charles and south Lake Charles, but Lake Charles. Vision and thinking big are a part of that. We\u2019ve laid the groundwork for change, but the change itself is going to be really politically difficult. And, so, I hope that we are able to look at those things in an unemotional and logical way, and base our decisions on science and aversion to duplication of services, but it will be difficult.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve laid the foundation with the GO Group. We have some amazing minds on those committees, and they\u2019ve got some amazing ideas, and I agree with a lot of their ideas. And so we\u2019ll have to see if people have the intestinal fortitude to really put some of those ideas into play.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have a chance right now to really make Lake Charles what we want it to be, and that is a community vision. It\u2019s not just one person\u2019s vision, that\u2019s a community vision that\u2019s going to include millennials, and it\u2019s going to include people of every race and religion and creed and age.<\/p>\n

\u201cEveryone has a piece of the quilt, and so I would encourage young people to start showing up at police jury and city council meetings. There are some young people on the GO Group, but I think we need more. I think we need more young people involved in local government. And I really encourage people, whether it\u2019s serving on a board, or whether it\u2019s throwing yourself in the ring and running for office, I encourage young people to get involved.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere is way too much divisiveness right now in politics, and I think that turns a lot of young people off. I grew up with this restaurant family, and had some amazing experiences and amazing conversations with people from every end of the social spectrum, and every end of the economic spectrum, and it wasn\u2019t until I actually got involved in politics that I realized the division that\u2019s been created between Democrat and Republican, and it\u2019s an unhealthy division, and I don\u2019t mind telling people I don\u2019t like it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"NicHunter-5181\"<\/a>What Next For Nic Hunter?<\/strong><\/p>\n

When, at the young age of 20, he moved the Harlequin to its current location on his own, Hunter says he had big plans to open a chain of Harlequins across the country, but later, after opening it, he realized he needed to stay put, that he could do a lot of good right in his hometown of Lake Charles.<\/p>\n

\u201cI put those plans for restaurants across the country on the back burner,\u201d he says, \u201cand I started getting involved in philanthropic work, stuff that\u2019s really near and dear to me. I love Lake Charles; I want to stay in Lake Charles. I have no plans to leave Lake Charles and seek any other office outside of Lake Charles. I think I have a knack for this, and by \u2018this,\u2019 I mean political life. The restaurant business taught me a lot, and I don\u2019t think there could be a better teacher for someone than working in the restaurant business to learn how to deal with people and then political life. (The restaurant business) has been an amazing teacher, and I want to keep going in politics. I really enjoy it, and as long as people still have faith in me, and as long as I have the drive and energy to do it, and as long as my wife says it\u2019s OK, then I want to keep moving forward.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Nic Hunter On Business, Politics And The Future Of SWLA FIRST IN A SERIES OF SWLA VISIONARIES Story By Scott E. Raymond \u2022 Photos By Lindsey Janies When first meeting Nicholas E. \u201cNic\u201d Hunter, age 31, you may be initially struck by his imposing 6-ft., 2-in.-plus height and medium build.\u00a0 Well-groomed, and wearing a black [&hellip<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":38,"featured_media":3878,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[388,846,776,862],"yoast_head":"\nNIC HUNTER: A CUT ABOVE - BestOfSwla<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/bestofswla.com\/2015\/10\/01\/a-cut-above\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"NIC HUNTER: A CUT ABOVE - BestOfSwla\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Nic Hunter On Business, Politics And The Future Of SWLA FIRST IN A SERIES OF SWLA VISIONARIES Story By Scott E. 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